When you ask the question, how do I sell myself as a life coach, are you aware of the distinction between marketing and selling? I ask because when we say “I need to learn how to sell myself” we are in fact often referring to marketing, rather than the financial transaction side of things, the part where you are talking to the client and asking them to pay you.
How do I market myself as a life coach?
Starting with how to market our life coaching business, you have probably heard about the importance of having a niche, and if you are like most life coaches it feels a bit of a bind. The fun starts to drain away when we have to think about niche and avatars but don’t worry, I’ve made it super easy for you.
A niche is a specific area or topic of interest within a larger subject or industry. It is a specialized focus or market segment that is targeted by a particular business, product, or service. Niches can be very specific and narrow in scope, or they can be broader and more general. For example, within the broader market of outdoor gear, a niche could be lightweight backpacking gear for thru-hikers, or it could be eco-friendly outdoor apparel. Niches allow businesses to differentiate themselves from their competitors and appeal to a specific group of customers.
Having a niche as a life coach can be beneficial for a number of reasons.
First, it allows you to become an expert in a specific area, which can make you more attractive to potential clients. For example, if you specialize in helping people overcome anxiety, you can focus your training and experience on that specific topic, which can make you more effective at helping your clients achieve their goals.
Second, having a niche can make it easier to market your services and attract clients who are looking for help in that specific area. If you have a clear focus and specialize in a particular area, you can create targeted marketing materials and use specific keywords to reach the people who are most likely to be interested in your services.
Finally, having a niche can help you stand out in a crowded market. With so many life coaches to choose from, having a specific area of expertise can help you differentiate yourself from the competition and make it easier for potential clients to find you.
A client avatar, also known as a buyer persona or marketing persona, is a fictional representation of your ideal client. It is a detailed description of a hypothetical person who embodies the characteristics, goals, and interests of your target market.
Creating a client avatar can be a helpful tool for businesses and entrepreneurs, as it allows them to better understand their target market and tailor their products, services, and marketing efforts to meet the needs and interests of their ideal clients. A client avatar typically includes information such as demographics, lifestyle, goals, challenges, and pain points, as well as information about how the person makes purchasing decisions and what motivates them to take action.
By creating a client avatar, you can more effectively target your marketing efforts and create more personalized and effective sales and marketing materials. It can also help you better understand your ideal client and the problems or challenges they are facing, which can inform your product development and customer service strategies.
Is there a short cut to avoiding the need of a niche and an avatar?
Yes and No.
The lower the price, the lower the risk for the client and the more flexible they become when they buy. They can start to adopt the attitudes of “If it doesn’t work, it hasn’t cost me a lot”.
And of course the higher the price the more personalised it needs to be, because the clients wants to make 200% sure it is right for them.
If you want to ditch either niche or avatar…hmm it’s hard to say.
Because the niche can be defined from the avatar.
However, the avatar is more time consuming in putting together.
Here are 10 questions to help you create a niche.
What are my areas of expertise or training?
What do I enjoy helping people with the most?
What unique experiences or qualifications do I have that could set me apart from other life coaches?
What specific problems or challenges do I feel most passionate about solving?
Who is my ideal client and what are their goals, challenges, and needs?
How can I help my clients achieve their goals in a way that is unique or different from other life coaches?
What are the most common questions or issues that my clients tend to have?
What niche markets or sub-niches within the life coaching industry could I potentially target?
How can I build my credibility and authority within my niche?
How can I create a niche that aligns with my values and personal mission as a life coach?
And here are 10 questions to help you create an avatar
Who is my ideal client?
What are their goals and aspirations?
What challenges or obstacles are they currently facing?
How do they make purchasing decisions? What are their values and beliefs?
What are their pain points or needs?
How do they prefer to receive information and support?
What motivates them to take action?
What are their hobbies and interests?
How can I create a personalized and effective coaching experience for them?
Now we can start at looking into how can you sell yourself?
Understanding your niche and getting a description of your avatar is going to help you because you can now start to personalise your marketing.
Have you heard of the brand “No More Nails”?
It’s a glue to help you stick things to the wall, like a small shelf.
The company could have described their glue as “the stickiest glue” but people don’t really want a sticky glue. Perhaps they could have chosen “The glue that dries fast” or even “The glue that lasts the longest” but their niche and avatar wasn’t asking for that.
Their niche and avatar is people like me.
I want a shelf in my room.
I don’t like DIY.
I don’t want to do DIY.
I want it now.
I do not want someone to do it for me.
Neither do I want a mess.
And this needs to be done now.
It’s got to be quick, clean, and it has to work.
Say hello to “No More Nails”
But a professional builder is not going to buy it or use it, and that’s why it’s not advertised to them.
We have to create desire, desire sells
When someone asks themselves how do I sell myself as a life coach, they often start thinking about the tools they can use.
Tools like, 1-1 coaching, NLP, Reiki, Hypnotherapy etc.
But people are not looking to buy that.
Sure, they know a hypnotherapist life coach can help them, but it’s not what they want.
Neither are they seeking to “level-up” or feel “fiercely feminine”.
What we require are the benefits, it’s the benefits that sell.
No one wants to buy a door handle, but a door handle you can be proud of because it enhances your image (if a door handle could ever do that) and it’s so easy to open the door. People will buy that.
Features, advantages and benefits
When people ask me “How do I sell myself as a life coach”?
I often ask them what are the benefits of working with them and they give me a list of advantages and not benefits. Benefits sell…
So here is an explanation for you.
In marketing and product development, the features of a product or service are the specific characteristics or capabilities that it has. These can be tangible or intangible, and they describe what the product or service does or how it functions.
The advantages of a product or service are the benefits or benefits that it provides compared to similar products or services. These can be functional, emotional, or societal benefits, and they describe how the product or service can meet the needs or desires of the consumer.
The benefits of a product or service are the positive outcomes that the consumer experiences as a result of using the product or service. These can be physical, emotional, or societal benefits, and they describe how the product or service helps the consumer achieve their goals or improve their quality of life.
For example, a feature of a smartphone might be its high-resolution camera. An advantage of this camera might be that it takes clear and detailed photos, and a benefit of the camera might be that it allows the user to capture important memories or document their travels.
The features, advantages and benefits of a new chocolate bar...
“How do I sell myself as a life coach”? I hear you ask.
Let’s start with a new chocolate bar.
It’s a wonder bar, because you don’t put on weight, its calorie free.
Feature – calorie free
Advantage – unlike other chocolate you don’t put on weight
Benefit – gorge yourself senseless, and devour the smooth velvet taste, take i the aromas and indulge in chocolate heaven all day long, without worrying you’ll gain weight.
How needs vs wants can help you sell life coaching
In marketing, a need is something that is essential or required for a person to survive or function effectively. Needs are basic human requirements, such as food, shelter, and clothing. They are often driven by physiological or safety-related concerns.
A want, on the other hand, is a desire or preference for something that is not essential or necessary for survival. Wants are driven by personal preference or societal expectations, and they can vary widely from person to person.
For example, food is a need because it is essential for survival, while a specific type of food, such as a particular brand of chocolate, is a want because it is not essential and can vary depending on personal preference.
In marketing, it is important to understand the difference between needs and wants because it can help businesses and marketers create products and marketing messages that effectively address the needs and desires of their target audience.
So, life coaching is a need.
Losing weight is a need.
Forgetting your ex is a need.
Finding clients is a need.
Having the confidence to go to your boss and get a pay rise and then to enjoy the cash is a want.
Looking at yourself in the mirror and liking what you see is a want.
Being happy, and having a new love in your life is a want.
Having clients who adore your work, pay you on time, leaving you proud and happy with the cash in your bank ready to invest into your lifestyle is a want.
Painpoints - are they really good to find clients?
